Live Coverage of the 2004 Japan Nationals

With Japanese players becoming a fixture on the Sunday stage of Pro Tours, the first one to accomplish that feat has returned to the spotlight in a big way. Fujita piloted his beloved Goblins through the tournament, this time splashing green for tons of artifact destruction to disrupt the Affinty dominated field. Oxidizes, Naturalizes and Viridian Shamans blew up artifact lands and Skullclamps along the way, letting Fujita's Goblins take care of the rest.

Joining Fujita on the National team are Kenji Tsumura, and Shunsuke Kamei. Tsumura grinded into Nationals on Thursday, and went on to a finalist appearance. The student from Hiroshima has been to a handful of Pro Tours, but this is his first big finish. Kamei played blue-white control to a third place finish, and will be the other member of the team. Kamei is a local from Osaka, who made his first big impact in competitive Magic in his hometown.

Without a doubt, as the National Champion and the veteran on the squad, Tsuyoshi Fujita will be the leader of this year's Japanese team. He has the experience and the deckbuilding skills to be successful, and Tsumura and Kamei certainly have the talent to win on the largest stage for Magic competition. Will they be able to bring the team trophy back home to Japan? We will find out in September.

Congratulations to Tsuyoshi Fujita, the 2004 Japanese National Champion!